European Innovation Council Selects New Scale-Ups for Strategic STEP Investment Programme

The European Innovation Council (EIC) has announced the latest group of innovative European scale-ups chosen to receive investment through its STEP Scale Up programme, reinforcing the European Union's commitment to supporting companies operating in strategic technology sectors.

The initiative provides growth-stage businesses with access to substantial equity financing, enabling them to accelerate commercial expansion, increase production capacity and compete more effectively on the international stage.

Supporting Europe's strategic technologies

The STEP Scale Up programme focuses on companies developing technologies considered essential for Europe's long-term competitiveness and economic resilience.

Selected businesses operate in sectors including advanced manufacturing, clean technologies, digital innovation, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, semiconductors and other strategic industries identified by the European Union as critical to its industrial future.

Through targeted investment, the programme aims to bridge the financing gap often faced by European scale-ups seeking to expand globally while remaining headquartered within Europe.

Closing Europe's scale-up funding gap

While Europe has built a strong innovation ecosystem, many promising technology companies continue to face challenges securing late-stage financing compared with competitors in the United States and Asia.

The EIC's investment strategy seeks to address this issue by providing patient capital that enables companies to scale operations without relocating outside Europe or relying exclusively on foreign investors.

By strengthening access to growth capital, the initiative supports the commercialisation of technologies developed through European research and innovation.

Boosting competitiveness and technological sovereignty

The programme forms part of the European Union's broader strategy to reinforce technological sovereignty in areas considered strategically important for economic security.

European policymakers increasingly view investment in innovative companies as essential to reducing dependence on external suppliers, strengthening industrial resilience and accelerating the green and digital transitions.

Supporting high-growth companies also contributes to job creation, knowledge transfer and the development of globally competitive industrial ecosystems.

Public investment to attract private capital

Beyond direct financial support, the STEP Scale Up programme is intended to mobilise additional private investment.

By participating as an anchor investor, the European Innovation Council seeks to reduce investment risk and encourage venture capital firms, institutional investors and strategic partners to finance Europe's next generation of technology leaders.

This blended financing approach aims to maximise the long-term impact of public investment while accelerating innovation across the European economy.

A stronger innovation ecosystem

The newly selected companies join a growing portfolio of European businesses backed by the EIC through grants, equity investments and blended finance instruments.

The Council has become one of Europe's most important public investors in deep-tech innovation, supporting businesses from early-stage research through to commercial scale-up.

Its investment model seeks to ensure that breakthrough technologies developed in Europe remain competitive globally while generating economic value within the European Union.

Strengthening Europe's innovation ambitions

As global competition intensifies in critical technologies, the expansion of the STEP Scale Up programme highlights the EU's determination to retain innovative companies and strengthen its industrial leadership.

By helping ambitious scale-ups overcome financing barriers, the European Innovation Council aims to build a stronger innovation ecosystem capable of transforming scientific excellence into globally competitive businesses and long-term economic growth.